BROMLEY 2 STAINES TOWN 1 – LEAGUE 04/11/03

With 8 mins to go it looked like Bromley were going to pay for their missed chances when 10 man Staines equalized, but a late winner from Huggins grabbed all three points for the Ravens and saw us make more progress in the league.

The first half saw Bromley look a little disjointed and the defence often flustered on possession by a strong direct side. Staines had a glorious opportunity to take the lead when their forward found himself one on one with Harwood, but he chipped his shot over the bar. Too often Bromley banged the ball long into the corner and it flew off into touch on the wet pitch, but on 36 mins a moment of magic saw us take the lead. Hammond hit a waist high cross over from the right and Amoako brilliantly twisted and volleyed the ball home for 1-0. Just before the break Mark Pye was sent off for Staines after the linesman attracted the ref to something he saw off the ball. 1-0 at half time.

The Ravens had the majority of possession in the second half with Staines proving hard to break down and the offside count for either side was high. Battams was booked for Staines after an awful foul on Hammond and later McKoy was booked for accidentally blasting a clearance at the ref when he blew for a foul! Huggins had three chances to score, but each time his first touch let him down and on 82 mins it looked like we would pay for it. Wilfort lost the ball in midfield and Maskell ran clear and curled a fantastic effort into the roof of the net from the edge of the box.

Reid and Gardner came on and Reid worried their defence with his pace and strength straight away. With 2 mins to go Reid got on the end of a ball out wide and hit a cross shot in from the left, Huggins was quickest to react and he just managed to turn the ball over the line for 2-1. Staines threw everything forward. Even their keeper Lovett went up for a corner and he nearly paid the price when the ball was cleared to Reid and his long range lob just bounced over the bar. The final whistle was greeted with great relief and the knowledge that this was a big win.

Quote for the game: ‘I love it, We’ve played shit and won!’

Team: Harwood, Smith, Willy, Vines, Harney, Forbes, McKoy, Hammond, Huggins, Amoako, Wilfort.

Subs: Hunt, Gardner, Butler, George, Reid.